DAVAO CITY – The ill-fated C-130 plane that crashed in Sulu while carrying 96 soldiers, mostly fresh graduates from military training, Sunday, July 4, had transported medical equipment and government employees under the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao Ministry of Interior and Local Government (BARMM-MILG) three weeks ago.
"Just three weeks ago, we boarded the same C-130 which was generously lent to us by the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Gen. Cirilito Sobejana, to ferry our management team and some medical equipment and supplies for the island provinces," said Atty. Naguib Sinarimbo, minister of the MILG and head of BARMM Rapid Emergency Action on Disaster Incidence (BARMM-READi), in a statement Sunday.
"The AFP also fetched our team in Tawi-Tawi after we were stranded there for a couple of days. These soldiers have been very generous and accommodating. Little did we know that a tragedy of this nature will later happen," Sinarimbo added.
Sinarimbo also condoled with the Armed Forces and the families of the soldiers.
"We express our sympathy and solidarity to the leadership of the AFP in this time of tragedy. Farewell to our soldiers. May your families find the courage and the strength in the thought that you have served your country well," he said.
The Western Mindanao Command said that all remains have been recovered and that identification is still ongoing.
The military also said that there is no truth to the rumor that the aircraft is defective as the plane still has 11,000 flying hours left.
Defense Secretary Delfin N. Lorenzana called on the public to refrain from spreading speculative statements which accuse the AFP of purchasing and using defective equipment.